Tariq Ramadan: A Voice for Decoloniality in France and in Morocco

Abstract

The dominance of social media has made religious authority temporary and fragmentised. Tariq Ramadan’s rise to fame in Morocco cannot be disconnected from the particular position he had in France as a controversial figure who spoke up for Muslims in many heated debates. Fieldwork in Morocco shows that the religious practices and points of view of fans of Tariq Ramadan bear similarities to those of youngsters in other countries. Although Islam is a shared interest, politics and postcoloniality play an important role in his popularity. The article demonstrates the importance of engagement with social, cultural and political issues as an indispensable constituent of authority, and argues that Moroccan fans of Ramadan are sensitive to the manner in which he criticises postcolonial power structures. The need to deconstruct neo-colonial structures and discourses is felt by French and Moroccan Muslims alike.